On July 15, 2011, I worked a double shift at one of the group homes under the company I worked for at the time. For some reason—I believe it was the spirit—I decided to step onto the scale to see how much I weighed. Well, I know I had gained weight since getting married, but didn’t have a firm number in mind. When I saw how much I weighed, it completely horrified me.

My mind immediately went to my wife and daughter, who turned a month old that day. My imagination took me to my own early demise, caused by my disregard for my own health. Weight is a factor of our overall health. So, maintaining a healthy weight shouldn’t be about looking a certain way or trying to fit into a certain size that society has predetermined. However, we shouldn’t blind ourselves to the fact that just because “thick is in”, our excessive fat often leads to heart disease, high blood pressure, aching joints, diabetes, and so forth.

I came up with a plan to regain my health. Though I’ve lapsed on certain areas, I can honestly say that as of Sunday, September 1, 2013—I am down 68.2 pounds from my July 15, 2011 weigh-in. On one hand, I’m thankful that I’ve been able to maintain my weight-loss over an extended period. On the other hand, I want to reignite my journey toward health and wellness.

Each week I will share with you my weight-loss progress (or failure) and what I’ve learned from my experiences. I will also share with you any sources I’ve found particularly helpful in learning how to eat a balanced diet and maintaining a regular exercise routine.

Let me disclose that I’m not a fan of fad diets. While many work on the short-term, you want long-term results. So, for me at least, I’d rather lose weight slowly and keep it off, than to go on a fad diet, lose 100 pounds in three months, then gain it all back the following three months.

Over the last 25.5 months I’ve lost 68.2 pounds, which averages to about 2.67 pounds lost per month. That doesn’t sound like much, but consider that most of that time I wasn’t specifically doing anything to lose weight or maintain my weight-loss. In essence, this means that I’ve made some permanent changes to my diet. Again, I’ll share some of these in later reports. I’ll also share my major mistakes in the process.

Finally, I invite your comments and invite you to join me in making a permanent change to your health. I’m not an expert and any suggestions I give are just that, suggestions. But hopefully I can inspire some of you to change your eating and activity habits for the better. Talk to your doctor before making any major changes to your diet or starting a new exercise routine.